The manipulation of biological cells and nanoparticles has important applications in life sciences and nanoscience such as intercellular communication, cell differentiation, single-cell sensing and analysis, early disease diagnosis, immunological interaction, and colloidal nanotechnology. Optical tweezers use light to manipulate particles and can offer high-resolution trapping of single particles in three-dimensional (3D) configuration (Grier D G. Nature 2003, 424, 810-816; Gluckstad J. Nature Mater. 2004, 3, 9-10; Pauzauskie P J et al. Nature Mater. 2006, 5, 97-101). However, the use of optical tweezers can be limited by the requirements of a tightly focused high-power laser beam and the prominent refractive-index contrast between the trapped objects and the liquid media. Optoelectronic tweezers use projected light patterns to form virtual electrodes on a photosensitive substrate and conductive electrolytes as liquid media, therefore using both electric bias and low optical power for arbitrary manipulation of particles and cells (Chiou P Y et al. Nature 2005, 436, 370-372). With the capability of concentrating light into the nanoscale, metallic nanostructures have been exploited in plasmonic tweezers to enhance the optical trapping (Righini M et al. Nature Phys. 2007, 3, 477-480; Juan M L et al. Nature Photon. 2011, 5, 349-356; Berthelot J et al. Nature Nanotechnol. 2014, 9, 295-299; Grigorenko A N et al. Nature Photon. 2008, 2, 365-370). Despite their low-power trapping of nanoparticles, plasmonic tweezers have limitations in long-range transport and arbitrary manipulation of the target objects (Ndukaife J C et al. Nature Nanotechnol. 2016, 11, 53-59; Zheng Y et al. Nano Lett. 2014, 14, 2971-2976). Recently developed electrothermoplasmonic tweezers can transport nanoparticles over a long distance and trap them at the plasmonic structures (Ndukaife J C et al. Nature Nanotechnol. 2016, 11, 53-59). Despite tremendous successes in these various light-based tweezers, low-power and versatile all-optical manipulation of general nanoparticles and cells remains elusive. The methods and systems discussed herein addresses these and other needs.